Gausas 600: Cat’s Cradle and JTS Brown
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Normally I wouldn’t be spotlighting to a class show on Improvoker. Class shows are usually a great place to watch students perfecting their craft, but are sometimes a little difficult to watch… but this isn’t an ordinary class show. This is the final performance of a 600 level class taught by instructor Christina Gausas.
Christina is first generation Del. She studied with Del Close, Charna Halpern, Mick Napier in Chicago, taught at IO Chicago, and is now teaching at UCB New York. Her current 600 level class, which is an advanced class, is performing two long form improvisational styles called JTS Brown and Cat’s Cradle. These two forms are by far the most interesting structures of improv I have ever seen. They border on the side of experimental theater, weaving abstract scenework into the long form structure.
Each form is very different from one another. JTS Brown begins with an improviser becoming a character and supporting improvisers becoming that character through a tag out like replacement. Cats cradle is an amorphous set of scenes, which morph from one scene to another through a series of almost dance-like montages.
I heavily recommend checking out this show if you are interested in seeing how improvisational forms can be used to create more complex performances. The ideas inherent in these structures beg the question, “what is possible in an improv performance?”
Del Close thought that improv should be more than just a quick joke. These forms really spotlight that improv can be more.